IELTS Tips and Strategies

March 29, 2014

Every week, we’ll be sharing a list of posts, stories, news, or opinions that we've run across the Internet during the past week or two. We won't be discussing them in detail here, but we do encourage you to check them out as they could contain valuable ideas and insights for your IELTS exam.

If you're ready, here we go...

LISTENING

Jeff Conn, an expert in phonetics and dialects, is paying special attention to the way Portlanders pronounce words like caught, dude, and no. He’s monitoring those words for signs of a phantom invasion—he wants to know if your dude sounds like di-ood, if your caught sounds like cot, if your no sounds like ne-ow.

READING

Little ones grasp the words for ooey-gooey stuff better when they smear it, mush it and throw it around from their high chairs, new research finds. The study reveals that context is key for toddlers learning new things.

GRAMMAR

We use personal pronouns (I, me, he, him, etc.) to replace names or nouns when it is clear what they refer to. We use possessives (my, your, her) when it is not necessary to name the person the thing belongs to. Learn more.

VOCABULARY

Whether your arena is a jungle, a desert, or a ticking time bomb, here are eight pieces of essential vocabulary you need to know in order to survive the Games. Don’t forget, knowing these definitions could save your life, and may the odds be ever in your favour!

December 21, 2013

Every week, we’ll be sharing a list of posts, stories, news, or opinions that we've run across the Internet during the past week or two. We won't be discussing them in detail here, but we do encourage you to check them out as they could contain valuable ideas and insights for your IELTS exam.

GRAMMAR

How do you decide which form of a pronoun to use, as in the choices of the wording in “John is as fast as him” and “John is as fast as he”? Knowing the varieties of pronouns will help you choose the correct form.

December 14, 2013

Every week, we’ll be sharing a list of posts, stories, news, or opinions that we've run across the Internet during the past week or two. We won't be discussing them in detail here, but we do encourage you to check them out as they could contain valuable ideas and insights for your IELTS exam.

December 7, 2013

Every week, we’ll be sharing a list of posts, stories, news, or opinions that we've run across the Internet during the past week or two. We won't be discussing them in detail here, but we do encourage you to check them out as they could contain valuable ideas and insights for your IELTS exam.

November 30, 2013

Every week, we’ll be sharing a list of posts, stories, news, or opinions that we've run across the Internet during the past week or two. We won't be discussing them in detail here, but we do encourage you to check them out as they could contain valuable ideas and insights for your IELTS exam.

November 23, 2013

Every week, we’ll be sharing a list of posts, stories, news, or opinions that we've run across the Internet during the past week or two. We won't be discussing them in detail here, but we do encourage you to check them out as they could contain valuable ideas and insights for your IELTS exam.

WRITING

SPEAKING

Get expert tips on what your body language says about you and learn easy ways to naturally come across as more confident, approachable, calm, friendly, and intelligent by using and incorporating the right gestures.

November 16, 2013

Every week, we’ll be sharing a list of posts, stories, news, or opinions that we've run across the Internet during the past week or two. We won't be discussing them in detail here, but we do encourage you to check them out as they could contain valuable ideas and insights for your IELTS exam.

If you're ready, here we go...

LISTENING

You're trying to make the right impression as you knock on the door of your blind date's apartment, or on the door of the personnel manager who has your job application. "Who's there?" you're asked. What's your reply?

November 9, 2013

Every week, we’ll be sharing a list of posts, stories, news, or opinions that we've run across the Internet during the past week or two. We won't be discussing them in detail here, but we do encourage you to check them out as they could contain valuable ideas and insights for your IELTS exam.

November 8, 2013

In Part 2 of the IELTS Speaking exam, you could be asked to describe a certain person. You could be asked to talk about a teacher, a person you admire, or a famous person you want to meet, among others.

Have you ever wondered how to go about answering these types of questions?

We've discovered this article from author Jody Hedlund where she was sharing the way to describe character appearances for her next novel. She thus suggests that we can make use of:

eye and hair descriptions.

You should mention eye color, hair color, hair length, or hair style.

other physical attributes

Let's say, the person had a thin face or knobbly knees.

verbal aspects

This applies when the person that you're describing has a favorite expression or catch phrase.

other characteristics

For example, a boy who's extremely forgetful.

actions

For instance, a person who always twitches his eyes.

TAKEAWAY:

Keep in mind that in your Speaking exam, your examiners are checking for the criteria of Lexical Resource and Fluency and Coherence. As these techniques involve the use of adverbs and adjectives, you would be able to highlight your skills in Lexical Resource. Also, if you add more descriptions on the person that you're talking about, then you could provide more depth to your two-minute talk in Part 2, which in turn would afford you a chance to get higher marks in Fluency and Coherence.

Hat tip to Jody Hedlund, for sharing these helpful techniques. Head on over to her blog for more information about writing.

November 6, 2013

We found this article written by Maeve Maddox and she was discussing the 50 Incorrect Pronunciations That You Should Avoid. Notable for Coach Jon and I were these six words because we've heard their mispronounced versions many times during conversations or on local TV.

Here are the 6 words, together with Ms. Maddox's tips:

aegis

This word shouldn't be pronounced / ay-his /. The ae in this word is rather pronounced / ee /. Therefore, it should be / EE-JIS /.

anyway

Anyways is not correct. The word is anyway.

cache

Coach Jon usually sees this word when technology websites talk about processors (CPUs). The word is pronounced as / KASH /. He remembers this because many years ago, he said / ka-shay /.

niche

/ Nitch / is not correct. / NEESH / is the correct one.

pronunciation

This should be / PRO-NUN-CI-A-TION /, not / pro-nounce-i-a-tion /.

vehicle

This one we hear often. When people say this word, we hear / vee-Hikl /. If you want to say this correctly, try / VEE-IKL /.

We know there are other difficult words out there. The good thing is that there are dictionary apps that could guide us with pronunciation. Let's make use of them. Who knows, improving your pronunciation could play a deciding factor in your quest for a high band score in Speaking.

Hat tip to Maeve Maddox, for sharing these helpful reminders. Head on over to Daily Writing Tips for more information about grammar, writing, and the English language.

November 5, 2013

Before leaving home for the exam, I recite some tongue twisters just to help me avoid mispronouncing the words when I answer the examiner's questions. I usually visit a website for this. It's called Twister King. There, you'll see lots of practice exercises for each letter of the alphabet.

Say, you need to practice pronouncing the F, P, and TH sounds. Simply proceed to the relevant page, then practice. Here are some of my favorites:

Re: F
"Four free-flow pipes flow freely."

Re: P
"Pick a partner and practice passing, for if you pass proficiently, perhaps you'll play professionally."

Re: TH
"Tim, the thin twin tinsmith."

Keep in mind that in the IELTS speaking test, one criteria checked by your examiners is pronunciation. In other words, to get high scores when it comes to pronunciation, IELTS candidates should always pronounce words in the correct manner. You don't need to spend a whole hour for the tongue twister exercises. Even a few minutes would be enough to warm you up. However, if you decide to make it an everyday habit to recite an exercise or two, then good for you. You'll be on your way to improving your performance in the exam.

Hat tip to Twister King, for sharing these helpful exercises. Head on over to the site to improve your pronunciation for the IELTS exam.

November 4, 2013

Lexical Resource is a criteria of your IELTS writing and speaking exam. Here, your examiners are checking on the extent of your vocabulary skills in your writing tasks and speaking performance. Despite this requirement, many candidates still copy the exact words from the question. Others always repeat the same set of words. As a consequence, they fail to highlight their skill in vocabulary. In other words, this becomes a possible cause for their low band scores in the IELTS exam.

How do we maximize our band scores with regard to Lexical Resource?

The goal is for you to use a variety of related words. We came across an article by writer Jeff Goins where he mentioned two specific solutions that could help you with your IELTS exam.

For instance, instead of just saying the commonly used word 'make,' why not use a suitable word like 'produce,' 'assemble,' or 'manufacture?'

TAKEAWAY:

If you find yourself having this problem of copied/repeated words, remember these 2 tips. Not only will you be able to express compelling arguments, but you will also be able to clearly convey your ideas. This translates to a good chance of complying with criteria of Lexical Resource, which then affords you an opportunity to receive a better overall band score.

Hat tip to Mr. Jeff Goins, for sharing these important tips. Head on over to his blog to learn more about writing.